ANY News on ACA Hearing?

[Capt RJ]

Any news on this a.m. hearing ?

 

[Capt RJ]

For all interested:
The bankrupcy judge found no cause for UAL to reaffirm the contract. Basically ACA is in a real bind over the situation due to impending CRJ orders. It seems UAL just keeps using the bankrupcy laws to screw all their business partners, creditors, employees, etc.

 

[walkthasky]

Figured that...

Kinda thought this would happen being that they have a 120 days from December 9, 02. Oh well, back to reserve

P.S. Did anyone else hear about a possible American Connection ??? I guess anythings possible...

 

[AvJunke]

For all interested:
The bankrupcy judge found no cause for UAL to reaffirm the contract. Basically ACA is in a real bind over the situation due to impending CRJ orders. It seems UAL just keeps using the bankrupcy laws to screw all their business partners, creditors, employees, etc.

That $ucks. Just to be clear, was the judges finding that UAL does not have to reaffirm the contract by the Feb. 28th date I've heard so much about or that they have no responsibility to reaffirm the contract all together. Thanks in advance for the clarification, wondering if this is another hurdle in a series of setbacks or the genesis of all of the doom and gloom I've heard about for poolies at ACA.

 

[DoinTime]

CHICAGO -- An executive for UAL Corp. (NYSE:UAL - News) said Monday that the airline is mulling the closure of its hubs in Los Angeles, Denver and Washington as part of its reorganization plan.

Senior Vice President Gregory T. Taylor said in court testimony that UAL, parent of United Airlines, was asked by its board of directors to consider the hub closures as an alternative. The board also asked the company to look into the possible sale of the airline's Pacific operations, he said.

Separately, the judge overseeing UAL's bankruptcy case here denied Atlantic Coast Airlines Holdings Inc.'s (ACAI) motion to force UAL to assume or reject a contract between the two companies.

Atlantic Coast, of Dulles, Va., provides regional airline service for UAL under the United Express brand. United Express generates about 85% of Atlantic Coast's revenue.

Among other things, the contract calls for Atlantic Coast to add 47 regional jets and retire 30 older turboprop planes by April 2004 at a total cost of $940 million.

Attorneys for Atlantic Coast said that such capital spending, particularly without any assurances from United, put an undue financial burden on the company.

But attorneys for UAL said that the company shouldn't have to make any decisions about the Atlantic Coast contract because of the evolving nature of the reorganization plan.

In his ruling, Judge Eugene R. Wedoff said that United's need to keep its reorganization free of any early obligations was greater than Atlantic Coast's need to have answers about the contract. He said that Atlantic Coast still has a number of options, including negotiating new terms with the planes' manufacturer, Bombardier Inc. (BBD.B)

In court testimony, Atlantic Coast Chief Financial Officer Richard J. Surratt said the uncertainty surrounding UAL could make it difficult to obtain outside financing for the new planes.

Though the company has one of the best balance sheets in the industry with $ 189 million in cash and $44 million in deposits, that position could be threatened by the burden of the upgrades, he said.
He declined to comment on the judge's ruling after the hearing.

UAL's Taylor said UAL's reorganization plan is still very much in the formative stages. The company continues to evaluate several options in addition to the creation of a new, low-cost airline, he said.

-By Erik Ahlberg; Dow Jones Newswires; 312-750-4141; [email protected]

 

[SkywayFO]

So what happened with Air Wiskies hearing on the 21st they had one onthe Judges schedual that was worded very much the same as the ACA one. Anyone know anything about that?

 

[WhiteCloud]

Maybe it's time for ACA to play hardball back and RAISE the departure rates as a consequence of UAL's inability to get this issue settled. Isn't that what creditors do when individuals or companies can't or won't honor their agreements? OK....probably won't happen but it's interesting to think about.

 

[g159av8tor]

Maybe ACA should drop the fee for departure and get paid per RPM since we're running very full all of the time. Just a thought...tailwinds...

 

[WhiteCloud]

Maybe ACA should drop the fee for departure and get paid per RPM since we're running very full all of the time. Just a thought...tailwinds...

Makes sense....1552rpmx2=$3104 That's about right isn't it?

 

[Tyler Durden]

The decision on Air Wisconsins contract is to be decided no later than March 25th per the company memo. Haven't heard anything as of late. Buckle up, it's gonna be a rough ride!